The 7th BMW…an E23

I’m not sure why it worked out like this, but after getting a 6er as my 6th BMW, I bought a 7er as my 7th BMW. This was a special car, a federalized E23 745i with full Euro trim. Cosmetic upgrades included a BBS front spoiler and the OEM BMW trunk lid spoiler. The suspension included updated wheels, springs and a genuine Hartge front strut bar. The engine also had also been treated to a lot of work. I had records of $15K in performance & maintenance, and I’m sure there was more. Custom exhaust, custom chip, upgraded wastegate, the list went on. My favorite upgrade was the Getrag 265. Most of these cars left the factory with an automatic. I’m a fanatic about manuals, but this is one of the few cars I’d recommend with an automatic.

This car also came with a lot of title issues. I’m not fond of them, but tenaciousness can win out in the end. Mechanically, the car only needed a fuel pump relay to start up. Sometimes it’s the simplest things!

It also needed a little work on the HVAC system. Trust me, this isn’t something you should tackle as a beginner. The Behr vac-operated system is fairly simple, but only because of a few dedicated individuals over at Bimmerforums. HitManX is certainly first and foremost among them.